A spy reveals her life in disguise
“Don’t look back” — someone is definitely following you. “Use your gut” to choose your next move. Are you being bugged with microphones and cameras in the walls of your office or apartment? “Assume that you are.” As you drive to a crucial meeting with an asset, if you realize you’ll be boxed-in by other vehicles, scoot away. Then, before you duck out of the car,... READ MORE
Bridging the generation gap
In 2016, the World Health Organization embarked on an ambitious campaign called the Global Campaign to Combat Ageism. The campaign was necessary, according to the WHO, since “unlike other forms of discrimination, including sexism and racism, [ageism] is socially accepted and usually unchallenged.” Recently, a team of researchers at Cornell University, working on behalf of the... READ MORE
Folklore society nourishes African heritage
At the gateway to the historic black community of Jackson Ward, a light-filled, street-level building is brightened by the colors of Africa: rich reds, yellows and greens. This is the headquarters of the Elegba Folklore Society, a cultural arts organization at 101 East Broad Street, whose mission and outreach are different from other Richmond museums. The society, established 30 years ... READ MORE
Flutist’s lyrical memoir uplifts
I am no dope I see how my family notes my lapses and losses of appropriate words or a name or the date and it makes me fretful to be forgetful so I try to hide it So begins one of the first poems in Eugenia Zukerman’s book Like Falling Through a Cloud, which her publisher describes as a “lyrical memoir of coping with forgetfulness, confusion and a dreaded... READ MORE
Artists bring new life to shops
In a cozy, second-floor studio at Long Reach Village Center in Columbia, where the walls gleam with a fresh coat of white paint, artist Stacey Berger stepped back from a collage to gain perspective. She gazed at the meticulously arranged, diamond-shaped pieces of orange and blues. “I tore pages out of National Geographics and cut them into strips,” explained Berger, surrounded by the ... READ MORE
Opening career opportunities
Baltimore resident Emma Smith, 61, was looking for her big break last year. She had been working hard as a security guard, but still wasn’t making enough money to comfortably pay the bills. “They took pride in saying that they paid people 60 cents over minimum wage. Wow,” Smith said sarcastically. She had recently received a commercial driver’s license from a local training... READ MORE
Fresh deliveries help support local farms
The turning point in Mark Lilly’s life came in 2008, when the former Marine decided to take a course at the University of Richmond, where he worked. As part of the emergency management class, titled “Hazards and Threats of the Future,” Lilly had to create a 20-year projected scenario of a disaster; in his case, famine in the West in the year 2029. When he predicted a pandemic... READ MORE
Making a match to spark love
As coronavirus began to narrow nearly everyone’s lives to the confines of their homes and essential errands, Leora Hoffman despaired that the matchmaking business she had built and grown since 1990 would take a big hit. But she couldn’t have been more wrong. The pandemic hasn’t put a damper on her company, Love By Leora, which focuses on making matches primarily between older... READ MORE
Why a virtual Expo?
They say human beings are “social animals,” and that deprived of human contact, we wither away. But what are we to do in an age when social distancing can be a matter of life and death? Fortunately, we humans are also highly creative and resourceful, so there are many answers to that question: We hold FaceTime or Zoom conversations, virtual events, and small-scale, outdoor gatherings ... READ MORE
What retirees (should) want
Since he was 24 years old, author and aging expert Dr. Ken Dychtwald has studied the psychology of retirement. Now 70, he has given presentations on his research into the subject of aging to more than one million people over the years. Yet the renowned gerontologist is in no hurry to retire himself from the company he started 40 years ago. “The irony of the fact that I’m not... READ MORE
